1 Chronicles 18 Study Notes

18:11 David did not add all of these things to his personal wealth, but he placed them into a treasury that was dedicated . . . to the Lord. Later on, much of it would go into the building of the temple.

18:12-13 Abishai was Joab’s brother and a general in his army. Abishai represented David in a campaign against the Edomites, and eighteen thousand enemy warriors were killed. Even though Abishai was the leader of the battle, David was the king, so this section reiterates David’s unbroken record of victories.

18:14 A glorious time is depicted in this short verse. David looked after his people by making sure that justice and righteousness prevailed for everyone. No greater compliment can be paid to any ruler.

18:15-16 A quick overview of the most important people surrounding David starts with Joab, still his commander in chief. Jehoshaphat, the court historian, and Shavsha, the court secretary, kept records of what happened in the palace. There were still two high priests, Zadok and Ahimelech (who replaced his father Abiathar), because there were still two main places of worship.

18:17 The Cherethites and the Pelethites, who reported to Benaiah, apparently were Philistine groups who were loyal to David and who may have been his bodyguards (see 11:24-25). Why would David have Philistines as bodyguards? You do not need bodyguards against open, obvious enemies; you need bodyguards against people who work their way into the king’s presence to carry out an assassination. Thus, bodyguards of a different ethnic origin were well-suited for this task.